Korean Job Discussion Forums

[theevilgenius]

I want to buy a guitar and am wondering does anyone know if I can get a decent sounding acoustic one for around 200,000won, please help me out with make and model if you can, cheers! PS I'm not in Seoul so won't be making a trip up there for a guitar so please don't tell me to check shops out up there.

[Underwaterbob]

As counter-intuitive as it sounds, cheap acoustics are only for experienced players. You will not sound good-no matter how hard you try-as a beginner on a cheap acoustic guitar. I believe this is the number one reason many beginners become disinterested in playing.

Acoustic guitars use heavy strings and have high action (the distance between the string and the fret board.) If you have no calluses, it will feel like you are slowly sanding off the tips of your fingers, and you will often not be able to even make the strings connect well enough with the frets to make a sound other than "bzzz". Cheaper acoustics are especially notorious for this.

For 200'000, I'd recommend a cheap electric guitar. Electric is much easier on uncallused fingers, and you will sound like a better player than you are right off the bat, hopefully keeping your interest in playing. There are some very playable, dirt-cheap electrics these days too. Outside of Seoul, your best bet would be a Samick or Squire. If you can find one, Artec (a Korean company) makes an AWESOME sounding 3watt amp (I can't remember the model name, but you can't miss it, it's tiny) that you can find pretty much anywhere.

Happy playing!

[wishfullthinkng]

i agree with what bob said. unless you chop trees for a living and have some serious calluses and finger strength, don't get a cheap acoustic. until you get to the upper echelons of guitars where the differences become minor, you get what you pay for.

get a cheap electric, a used fender squire stratocaster or something of the ilk and have a ball learning and getting the strength, speed and calluses before even looking at an acoustic.

edit: you might want to say where you are located. saying you're not in seoul without saying where you actually are isn't going to help many people.

[methdxman]

[eamo]

Bob is on the money here.......never learn to play on a cheap acoustic.

[sevenseven7]

Most likely you'll end up buying a much better guitar later on. Maybe you should invest now and get a mid-range?

[morrisonhotel]

[sadguy]

people tend to give up once they reach the barre chords and they realize an F chord is hard as hell.

if strings and calluses are a problem, getting lighter gauged strings will help.

if you buy a cheap electric, you also need to buy a practice amp.

i'd go for an acoustic still, i taught myself on one and it set me back about 220$.

[Sticks]

Cheap Acoustic if you're positive you'll be continuing to learn guitar past the 'owwie owwie my fingertips feel burnt off' stage. I ended up getting a relatively cheap electric (Cort G250) it looks pretty, plays well and sounds good on a decent amp. There's a cheapo Crafter Acoustic in our room which i've tried to play on and it really rips into my fingers.

Get a cheap electric: It'll sound ok to good, you can adjust quite a few things on it once you've learnt a bit and it'll kill your fingers much, much less initially meaning you'll enjoy playing it more.

I would suggest http://www.justinguitar.com/ as well for learning and some beginner tips. Heck, he even suggests getting an electric.

[movybuf]

I initially learned how to play on a super cheap piece of junk guitar. It was difficult at first, but I built up the calluses and strengthened my fingers in no time.

Then I moved up to a $300 Fender acoustic, which was a bit easier to play but I had an annoying ringing on the low E.

Now I have a 150,000 won Dexter DD-15-SN that sounds nice and is pretty easy to play. I would recommend it. The action is the same, or
Maybe even better than my old Fender. It doesnt have that annoying buzzing sound. Plus, it was half the price!

I also have a $3,000 dollar Taylor 610-CE acoustic/electric that is amazingly easy to play and sounds like a dream. Unfortunately, I don't get to play this one for a while because I'm afraid my 1 year old son will destroy it somehow.

[pattyb]

Get the Best guitar you can afford. All good points. However, the better the guitar, the more enjoyment you'll get out of it and the more likely you will be inspired to play. The more inspired you are the more often you will practice and it will be a good investment. There is always a chance you'll quit but at least you'll have tried with a good instrument and it will fetch a few dollars as far as re-sell value.

On the other hand, if you buy a cheap guitar, it'll probably play and sound like crap, it won't inspire you to practice, and it won't be worth "crap" if you try to sell it.

JMHO but I've played for over twenty years and most players will agree with this. I think.

[Underwaterbob]

[methdxman]

[Seoulman69]

There is a way to get the best of both worlds. Buy a semi-acoustic. It sounds good unplugged but the action is also easy to play. Go to craigslist and look for a guitar like an Epiphone Dot. It will cost more but when you sell it you will get a higher resale value.

Check out:
http://seoul.craigslist.co.kr/msg/2387909213.html

Haggle this person down then you will be sorted.

[eamo]